Sally clapped her hands three times to get photographers' attention.

"Alright, we're done! We don't want our powerful couple to go blind, they still have lots of stuff to do!", she quipped, making photographers laugh and they slowly started to put down their cameras.

Grace smiled as she watched Sally.

"Boy, she is good!", she chuckled and when she didn't get any reply from Lucas, she looked up at him only to see him looking at her smiling like he just won a lottery. Grace softly smiled as she creased her eyebrows "What?", she asked curiously.

Lucas' eyes sparkled.

"A powerful couple", he whispered with a smile, inching closer to Grace's face "I like that", his smile grew as her cheeks flushed and she smiled back.

And then he kissed her. Without hesitation and without holding back.

And the gasps on the street were heard.

And cameras started to flash on and on and on!

And Grace pulled him closer to her, kissing him back with everything she had.

No holding back.

As an applause boomed through the air, Lucas' felt Grace's lips smiling into their kiss.

Holding her palm against the back of his neck she whispered:

"So do I".

—--

The rest of the day passed in the flurry of activity. Hickham took the journalists and photographers to see the hot springs. Many of townsfolk went home for lunch, while some of them stayed in town with their friends.

The journalists and photographers caught the late afternoon train and left Hope Valley with a story worth telling in their notebooks and in their hearts.

Grace and Lucas decided to take a walk out of the town, nearing the forest, just enjoying their time together.

It was then that Grace told him what else she found out during her days in Hope Valley before he arrived.

"The only one I didn't like was Fiona. She acted like it wasn't a big deal that you didn't want to run for Governor's position", she gently squeezed his fingers "She did say that you are quite good at what you do, but that you two never really got along quite well. She said that both of you made mistakes and that the trust was never quite the same. She said that you and Henry always stuck together which was annoying for her."

Lucas let out a humourless laugh.

"Typical Fiona. I would prefer Henry as a business partner anytime. She likes to do things without consulting anybody. That's how she brought Jerome Smith back here, the man who had blood of 47 miners from this town on his hands", he shook his head "People were blaming Henry and me, while nobody said anything to her."

Grace creased her eyebrows.

"That wasn't fair", she said seriously.

Lucas nodded.

"No, it wasn't. However, Henry blew up a mine and he was seen as a hero. It wasn't until a few nights ago at that dinner that Florence apologized to me for blaming me for not stopping reopening the mine. I understand, she lost her husband in that mine", he said, his voice silent

Grace sadly smiled.

"Still, it wasn't your fault", she looked up at him "I am glad that Florence took a chance and apologized to you."

Lucas sadly smiled and bringing her hand to his lips, he gently kissed her knuckles.

Grace bit her lower lip, a nervous tick that Lucas immediately recognized.

He stopped and turned toward her.

"Sweetheart?"

Grace looked up at him and he saw a storm of emotions in her eyes.

She knew it was time to tell him. She knew that it will shake the ground under his feet, but Grace knew that she couldn't keep that away from him.

She took his other hand in hers and holding both of his hands, she silently said:

"Lucas… I have to tell you something", she tried to encourage and support him with her warm, compassionate look.

He stopped and looked at her, slightly confused.

Grace took a deep breath in and started to talk.

"It's something Minnie told me about…about Elizabeth. Apparently, Angela and Cooper came home one day from school and asked Minnie and Joseph not to vote for you", Grace took a shivering breath in, looking at their joined hands "This is harder than I thought it will be…Lucas", she looked back at him "Minnie told me that Elizabeth acted like she was the one who was hurt and betrayed. She told me that Cooper and Angela came home one day telling them that they don't want them to vote for you because you had broke their teacher's heart and left her to become a Governor instead of marrying her."

Grace watched as Lucas' face lost all colour.

"What?!", he mumbled silently, his voice coloured with disbelief.

Grace felt her heart breaking into thousands of pieces as she saw hurt in his eyes.

And he still didn't hear the worst part.

Lucas could see that Grace was struggling with something and he silently asked:

"What is it that you're not telling me?"

Grace took a shivering breath in.

"This isn't easy for me to tell you, but you have the right to know. I don't want you to walk around in darkness about what she's done", Grace all but spat the words, anger and fury at Elizabeth's manipulation reaching a boiling point "Lucas…on the day of election she told the children in school that you and her both decided to end things up and…", Grace stammered, feeling tears burning inside her throat "and she told them that she is grateful for their support and for being protective of her".

Lucas' face went deadly pale and Grace felt how his whole body started to shiver.

"That's not truth", he barely managed to speak from shock and disbelief "Grace, that's not truth!"

Grace nodded, gently squeezing his palms.

"I know, my Lucas", she tried to assure him "I know."

Lucas pulled his hands from her only to run them through his hair.

"How… Why… Why did she say that?!", he let his arms drop by his side "How could she say that, Grace?!", he suddenly stopped his pacing and looked back at Grace "And the people in town?"

Grace swallowed hard.

If Elizabeth Thornton was anywhere near her, Grace would make sure that the spiteful woman regrets everything she had said and done to Lucas.

"Minnie told me that she never got the record straight with people in town either. Gustave did that right before he left for Capitol City…", she started to talk, but Lucas interrupted her, his voice desperate.

"No wonder that nobody contacted me back then, Grace!", he gasped.

Grace bit her lower lip.

"Minnie and Joseph tried to explain everything the best they could to Angela and Cooper. However, they warned them not to speak about all that with other children, no matter what because, as Minnie said, it is not their story to tell, it's Elizabeth's. Minnie said that she doesn't want her children to start gossiping because she and Joseph raised them better than that", Grace finished gently.

Her heart crashed into million of pieces as she saw Lucas angrily pulling on his tie and taking it down, he slammed it on the ground, only to follow the material as he fell on his knees.

Grace gasped, tears nearly bursting out of her eyes as she launched in the snow beside him.

She wrapped her hands around Lucas and pulled him in her arms. She felt him shaking violently in her arms and she pulled his head to her shoulder, letting him bury his face in her hair as the strangled sob left his throat.

Grace swallowed her tears.

I must stay strong for Lucas. I can't fall apart.

"Minnie said that Gustave snapped at Elizabeth when she wanted to go to Capitol City with Nathan and Bill after you were attacked. She said it was then that people actually got a glimpse of what really happened. Gustave told her that you don't need her to come just so she could clean her dirty consciousness. He told her that she played with your feelings for three years and that he wouldn't allow her to continue, nor go near you ever again".

Lucas pulled back from her and gasped for breath.

"Gustave, mon frère" ("Gustave, my brother"), Lucas looked at Grace, his throat tightening with pain "Grace, I didn't do that. How could she let everybody think that I did something like that?!"

Grace took his hands and helped him get up.

"Lucas, listen to me. I know you didn't. What she did was wrong. Children can be very sensitive when they are fond of someone and they hear somebody else talk bad about that person. I can't believe that Elizabeth would be so manipulative with children. But you need to clear your name. That's why I am telling you all this".

All of a sudden, Lucas' face got ashen. He fell silent like a huge shock struck him hard. He placed his hand on his chest and gasped for air.

Grace ran to him, one hand on his shoulders, the other one on his cheek.

"Lucas. Lucas, look at me!", as his eyes stopped at her face, she held his gaze firmly, allowing him time to recover.

Lucas closed his eyes painfully for a few moments. When he opened them again, Grace's eyes filled with tears as she saw his gaze full of pain and heard his tearful whisper:

"Grace…what did she say to Jack?!"